He's nothing special...probably a #4 on a good team, so here he'll be asked to be a #2/#3 type (asking him to be a #2 is aking a lot), but if he puts up innings (admittedly he hasn't done this yet) and wins a little more than he loses, he did well. He should be OK as long as the Mets don't ask too much of him, as they kind of have to do with Pelfrey...Pelf really shouldn't be more than a #4 or #5 on this team.

Edited by Colorado Rockies 1976, 05 April 2012 - 06:48 AM.

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THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

Niese is much better than Pelfrey. Pelfrey had some "good" years in 2008 and 2010, but that was more about fortunate homerun prevention than anything else. His poor years in between (2009 and 2011) are more in line with his true talent level. Just to make this even more clear, Pelfrey's season best strikeout to walk ratio was 1.72 in 2008; Niese ran a 3-to-1 strikeout to walk ratio last season AND posted a groundball rate better than any Pelfrey season.

As for Niese, his overall ERA hasn't been pretty; once you adjust for the park and league, he's been 15% worse than league average over his career. However, better stats that are based on what a pitcher has under his control (which are better at predicting ERA too), show Niese has the upside of being an above average pitcher; probably something in the Wandy Rodriguez mold. In fact, here are their career numbers side by side:

Over the last 5 seasons, Wandy ran an ERA that was 11% better than league average, which was in line with other starting pitchers like Ted Lilly, Matt Garza, and Ryan Dempster. Essentially, guys who have been pretty good starting pitchers over the last half-decade, but not quite front of the rotation level.

Of course, one could even argue Niese might be better considering he gets more groundballs, walks slightly less, and is coming off of a season in which he posted defensive-independent numbers that ranked him among the game's best 30 starting pitchers. I'm not saying Niese will be that good, but his upside is definitely better than a #4 starter.

No idea if anyone also follows the Mets' minor league system, but all of their full-season affiliates kick off their seasons today too. Matt Harvey, who most of you should know, is the Opening Day starter for Wally Backman's Buffalo Bisons (AAA). Jeurys Familia, another one of the team's top prospects, is also going to be pitching in Buffalo this year. We could very well see these guys debut at some point in 2012. Zack Wheeler, who I like even more than Harvey and Familia, was assigned to Binghamton (AA) and will pitch tomorrow. Last year's two top draft picks, Brandon Nimmo (outfielder) and Michael Fulmer (right-handed pitcher), who are also top 10 prospects in the organization, are headed in different paths; Fulmer is being pushed right into full season A ball (Savannah) despite virtually no pro experience. Nimmo, on the other hand, is being held back in extending spring training and is probably ticketed for a short-season team like Brooklyn or Kingsport.

Edited by nmigliore, 05 April 2012 - 10:03 AM.

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LETS GO METSLETS GO DEVILS

"Take all that clubhouse [expletive] and all that, throw it out the window. Every writer in the country has been writing about that [expletive] for years. Chemistry don't mean [expletive]."

Niese is much better than Pelfrey. Pelfrey had some "good" years in 2008 and 2010, but that was more about fortunate homerun prevention than anything else. His poor years in between (2009 and 2011) are more in line with his true talent level. Just to make this even more clear, Pelfrey's season best strikeout to walk ratio was 1.72 in 2008; Niese ran a 3-to-1 strikeout to walk ratio last season AND posted a groundball rate better than any Pelfrey season.

As for Niese, his overall ERA hasn't been pretty; once you adjust for the park and league, he's been 15% worse than league average over his career. However, better stats that are based on what a pitcher has under his control (which are better at predicting ERA too), show Niese has the upside of being an above average pitcher; probably something in the Wandy Rodriguez mold. In fact, here are their career numbers side by side:

Over the last 5 seasons, Wandy ran an ERA that was 11% better than league average, which was in line with other starting pitchers like Ted Lilly, Matt Garza, and Ryan Dempster. Essentially, guys who have been pretty good starting pitchers over the last half-decade, but not quite front of the rotation level.

Of course, one could even argue Niese might be better considering he gets more groundballs, walks slightly less, and is coming off of a season in which he posted defensive-independent numbers that ranked him among the game's best 30 starting pitchers. I'm not saying Niese will be that good, but his upside is definitely better than a #4 starter.

No idea if anyone also follows the Mets' minor league system, but all of their full-season affiliates kick off their seasons today too. Matt Harvey, who most of you should know, is the Opening Day starter for Wally Backman's Buffalo Bisons (AAA). Jeurys Familia, another one of the team's top prospects, is also going to be pitching in Buffalo this year. We could very well see these guys debut at some point in 2012. Zack Wheeler, who I like even more than Harvey and Familia, was assigned to Binghamton (AA) and will pitch tomorrow. Last year's two top draft picks, Brandon Nimmo (outfielder) and Michael Fulmer (right-handed pitcher), who are also top 10 prospects in the organization, are headed in different paths; Fulmer is being pushed right into full season A ball (Savannah) despite virtually no pro experience. Nimmo, on the other hand, is being held back in extending spring training and is probably ticketed for a short-season team like Brooklyn or Kingsport.

I said a #4 on a good team (I could see him winning 15 games or so if all broke right in that situation)...he could possibly be a #3 on other teams. I wasn't really comparing him to Pelf...on the Mets, I could see Niese being a decent #3, where Pelf should probably be a meh #4 or a meh #5 at best. I think Niese still has room to improve...I think we've already seen Pelf's best.

0

THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

Wow, nice comeback for Johan! Now if only these guys could manage more than one goddam hit (Harry Doyle reference)...

0

THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

Great pinch-hitting there numbnuts. Three straight strikes looking. Poor Johan gets a ND.

0

THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

What's in the air today? All games to this point are scoreless...it's the return of the Dead Ball Era!

EDIT: Not anymore...David Wright actually drives in a run and the Mets take the lead!

Edited by Colorado Rockies 1976, 05 April 2012 - 02:03 PM.

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THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

He misjudged a shot to center field, it went over his head for a triple then he hurt his leg again chasing the ball. At least Byrdak bailed him out but looks like we have no CF'er for the next few weeks.

Edited by NJDevs4978, 05 April 2012 - 02:23 PM.

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"The Devils have high standards, that's the difference. We have a standard to live up to every year, and a couple of teams in our area don't have the standards we do." - Pat Burns

The New Jersey Devils win Stanley Cups everywhere:-NHL record for most road wins in the playoffs - 10-1 in '95 and 10-2 in '00-NHL record for most home wins in the playoffs - 12-1 in '03

I know that there's supposed to be some leeway given on guys near/straddling the bag when trying to turn 2 at second base, but didn't that one seem a little absurd? The guy jumped away from the bag while the throw was on its way to him.

I know that there's supposed to be some leeway given on guys near/straddling the bag when trying to turn 2 at second base, but didn't that one seem a little absurd? The guy jumped away from the bag while the throw was on its way to him.

What do you expect, it's Phil Cuzzi over there...par for the course with him

0

"The Devils have high standards, that's the difference. We have a standard to live up to every year, and a couple of teams in our area don't have the standards we do." - Pat Burns

The New Jersey Devils win Stanley Cups everywhere:-NHL record for most road wins in the playoffs - 10-1 in '95 and 10-2 in '00-NHL record for most home wins in the playoffs - 12-1 in '03

THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

Johan's velocity was pretty uninspiring but he managed to pitch well and 13 swinging strikes is a positive sign.

TC was wise to call on Byrdak to get 2 huge outs, but Jon Rauch in the 8th (he did his job today, but I can't see this lasting) and having Tejada bunt was rather disappointing to witness.

Francisco's velocity still doesn't look to be there, but it was at least a little better today. That splitter really helped him today.

Really stinks to see Torres pull up lame and it sounds like he'll be DL-bound. Kirk Nieuwenhuis should absolutely be the call up given he's already on the 40-man and is the best ML-ready (or near ML-ready) option available. The outfield defense definitely just took a big hit though.

0

LETS GO METSLETS GO DEVILS

"Take all that clubhouse [expletive] and all that, throw it out the window. Every writer in the country has been writing about that [expletive] for years. Chemistry don't mean [expletive]."

Johan's velocity was pretty uninspiring but he managed to pitch well and 13 swinging strikes is a positive sign.

TC was wise to call on Byrdak to get 2 huge outs, but Jon Rauch in the 8th (he did his job today, but I can't see this lasting) and having Tejada bunt was rather disappointing to witness.

Francisco's velocity still doesn't look to be there, but it was at least a little better today. That splitter really helped him today.

Really stinks to see Torres pull up lame and it sounds like he'll be DL-bound. Kirk Nieuwenhuis should absolutely be the call up given he's already on the 40-man and is the best ML-ready (or near ML-ready) option available. The outfield defense definitely just took a big hit though.

1-0...I can't pick this one apart too much. We know what kind of a year it will be. I'm enjoying this while it lasts.

But yeah, the Torres situation sucks...ballplayers really come off as fragile wussies sometimes, fairly or unfairly.

0

THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!

Little wet blanket here...but why was Torres even out there? Guess it's time to harp on the training staff again...but he wasn't "right" for most of spring training...maybe it would've been best to play it safe and 15 day him to start the season instead of running him out there and getting hurt right away? because who knows how long it will be now, if there are any "setbacks" etc

thought the stadium looked great. Definitely more met like, love the new dimensions and uniforms

Edited by '7', 06 April 2012 - 10:25 AM.

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^7^ is just defending his sport sheeps.. as Alcibiades the exiled Athenian rationalizes in his speech to the enemy Spartans, he wants to take revenge on Athens because he loves it and can't stand to see the state it's in now - Triumph

loved Duda's 1st home run. You hit it that hard, that far, to that part of the ballpark and it should go out.

Braves are a proud franchise, but they seem to be sleepwalking. I don't think it will be long until they start making overtures to Bobby Cox about a potential return.

Edited by '7', 07 April 2012 - 03:17 PM.

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^7^ is just defending his sport sheeps.. as Alcibiades the exiled Athenian rationalizes in his speech to the enemy Spartans, he wants to take revenge on Athens because he loves it and can't stand to see the state it's in now - Triumph

Wright has yet to strike out, hits a dinger today...this will be fun for as long as it lasts.

Edited by Colorado Rockies 1976, 07 April 2012 - 06:02 PM.

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THE NHL MUST LOVE THE DEVILS - from who else? A RANGER fan![Mark Messier]: A big, bald attention whore with a stupid Easter Island-lookin face. - from who else? DaneykoIsGod!

Even when Marty comes back maybe Larry should put Clemmensen to be on the goal during the shootouts.Can the coach do that ? Switch the goalies 5 seconds to go in overtime? - Most priceless quote ever posted on a message board.

Martin Brodeur: THE MOST ALL-TIME WINS!, 12 straight seasons of 30+ wins, 3 Stanley Cups, 4 Vezina Trophies, and zero respect from too many so-called Devils "fans" who are either too young or too bandwagon to remember the much darker days of Sean Burke, Craig Billington, Bob Sauve, Alain Chevrier, and the talented but overwhelmed Chico Resch, among many others.

It's easy to support a great player when he's playing at his very best. It takes a true fan to support that same player during those rare moments and stretches when he's not. Babe Ruth went 0-4 some games, and sometimes Wayne Gretzky was held pointless. There may be such a thing as greatness, but no such thing as absolute perfection every single night.

#30 FOREVER!

20 out of 1,946 njdevs.com members agree: CR1976 is the Most Knowledgable Poster of 2008! Victory is mine...oh yes, victory is mine!